


No Going Back

by Tristiahna



Category: Danny Phantom
Genre: College, M/M, Phantom Planet never happened, Post-Series
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-04-20
Updated: 2015-06-30
Packaged: 2018-03-24 21:41:00
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,708
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3785224
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tristiahna/pseuds/Tristiahna
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Dash is surprised by the sudden appearance of Danny Fenton on his college campus. After they begin talking, past guilt and regrets resurface, and everything comes spilling out. Based on the prompt: "You used to bully/mess with me in school and it turned out it was because you had a major crush on me"</p><p>Edit: No longer a one-shot. College themed fluff and crack.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. No Going Back

**Author's Note:**

> I never meant for this to turn out so long. I don't even ship it, but.... now I am starting to reconsider. Apologies in advance, I don't have a betareader.  
> Also I'm sorry if there are any inaccuracies with any references to college life - I've never been to physical college ^^;

Dash took a deep breath as he glanced around the campus. It was late January and everyone was settling back in to the swing of school as they headed in to their spring semester. It was only his sophomore year, but he had quickly become familiar with a lot of the people on campus and easily fell in to the swing of college life. After an accident during his junior year of highschool, he was unable to make it in to the schools he had hoped to with a football scholarship. While he was still able to play casually, his opportunities for schooling had been drastically limited. He had originally been pretty horrified, but now he found that he didn’t mind as much as he thought he would. After his first year at the small college he found that it was nice to settle down and focus on academics instead of sports. As much as he hated to admit it college actually helped him to settle down a bit in general as well. After he lost contact with everyone he had been friends with in highschool it made him realize how petty and stupid he had been. I guess that was all part of growing up. He sighed as he began to make his way to the dorms when he spotted a kid sitting on a nearby bench. By the way he was looking around nervously, it was obvious that he was new. While there were a handful of people that enrolled or transferred in during the spring semester, the amount was significantly lower than the fall, and to Dash it just seemed weird. However, the sight of someone new wasn’t what stopped him in his tracks. What had caught his attention was not the fact that he didn’t recognize him, but the fact that he _did_.

“Fenton?” Dash called out, still a little dumbfounded. No one from his class had attended this college as far as he knew. Most wanted to get as far away as possible from Amity Park and its ghost related freakiness.

The kid looked up from the papers that he had been shuffling through and glanced around for the source of the voice.

Dash felt his heart to begin to race as he watched him react to his call. No way, it really was Fenton. He felt as if a train had hit him as memories of highschool flooded back. Dash briefly considered leaving, but before he could act, a voice caught his attention.

“Dash?” Danny responded hesitantly.

 _Damn it_. Dash mentally cursed. Well, it was too late to run off now and he made his way over the bench where Fenton was sitting.

“Hey loser, I didn’t expect to see you here.” Dash stated, trying to mask the fact that he was actually nervous. Was that guilt he was feeling? Or something else?

“I could say the same, Dash. I didn’t take you for the small college type.” Danny responded.

Dash shrugged. “Without a scholarship everything else just seemed out of reach. Not complaining though, this school has some killer parties despite it's size.”

“Sounds fun.” Danny stated bluntly while sticking the papers he had been holding in to his bag.

Dash briefly caught the words ‘dorm assignment’ on them, which meant Fenton wasn't commuting either. Dash didn't commute only because his parents didn't really want him home, not that he really wanted to be home either. The Fentons always seemed weird as hell, so Dash imagined he was probably trying to escape his parents.

“Not to be rude, but why are you here? I mean this is your first time, right? So you like, transferred or something? I know I haven’t seen you around here before.” Dash questioned.

Danny seemed to consider his answer for a moment before replying. “Well, no. To be honest I didn’t go in to college right after high school. Kind of seems strange, I know, but there was a lot I had to work through before I was able to jump back in to school again. So I’m technically just now starting college.”

“A lot to work through? Like, health issues or something?” Dash pressed.

“Err, yeah, something like that.” Danny responded uncomfortably. To be fair, it was partially the truth.

Right before graduation Danny had driven himself past the point of exhaustion and collapsed on several different occasions and some instances resulted in hospitalization. His rapidly declining health and physical state began to become more and more apparent and his parents were beginning to assume the worst. To top it off his mental health was taking the worst plunge of them all. Jazz, worried about his well-being, ended up spilling his secret to their parents saying that she really believed his life depended on it. He never held it against her, like she had feared, because as much as he did not want to face it, he knew she was absolutely right. His parents, of course, were very accepting they were able to talk it out, but shortly after graduation his parents had him seek help through rehab. They locked down the portal and insisted if anything managed to get through from some other source that they would handle it. As much as he feared for them, and insisted otherwise, he knew that if he continued on he would never make it till the end of the year. After his rehabilitation, he began working part time and, unless there was a ghost problem, aided his parents with their work. Despite them being very education-oriented people, they feared the immediate return to any sort of schooling would affect both his physical and mental recovery. Danny did not object to the delayed education since all his goals and dreams for his education had been tossed out the window when he got in to the portal accident anyway. However, he eventually chose to attend physical college saying that he wanted a social life and needed to get out, especially now that Tucker and Sam had moved away to attend their own universities. But, you know, Dash didn’t need to know any of that.

“Well, I’m glad you were able to work through them.” Dash said while awkwardly rubbing the back of his head.

Danny gave him a curious look. “Yeah, me too.”

Dash shifted uncomfortably. God what was he thinking trying to talk to Fenton? He was probably the last person he wanted to be greeted by anyway. He had been so cruel to him and for what reason? Other than the fact that his presence drove him crazy and it was ‘something to do’? Feelings of guilt bubbled up again. With that said, why was Fenton even giving him the time of day? Shouldn’t he be telling him to piss off or something?

Dash glanced back over to Danny who was staring at him stupidly, while trying to also avoid eye contact. To be honest he actually looked pretty cute sitting there nervously. Dash felt his heart speed up at that thought. Wait, what did he just call him? _Cute_? God, he thought he had gotten over that. About this time, had they been in highschool, Dash would have gotten frustrated with his thoughts and shoved him to the ground and told him that he was being weird in attempt to force away the thoughts. Girls liked boys, that’s just how it went; and Dash was no girl. If anyone had found out what he thought then-

“Dash, are you okay?”

Dash was torn from his thoughts and he looked at Danny who seemed to be a mixture of anxious and annoyed.

“Yeah I’m fine, why wouldn’t I be?” He scoffed, the response coming out a lot snippier than intended.

Danny rolled his eyes and put his hands in the air in mock surrender. “You know, I really should make my way to my dorm, I think I’m suppose to be meeting my roommate. You don’t care for me anyway, so I don’t know why you’re bothering.”

The feeling of guilt washed back over Dash as he watched him reach for his bag.

“Wait.” Dash said while reaching to stop Danny from making a further move.

However, the gesture apparently came off as threatening because Danny reeled back and put an arm up in self-defense.

Dash was nothing short of horrified.

Fenton still saw him as a threat. He still saw him as that nasty kid out to do him harm. He still saw him as that petty jock with nothing better to do than to harass and abuse him. Why did that bother him so much? It had been true at some point. That’s what he did all through highschool simply because he wanted to… what? Prove his masculinity? To keep himself on the A-list and impress the same friends who ceased contact with him after graduation? To try and cover up his true desires and thoughts because he couldn’t stand the thought of being an outcast too?

It took a moment for Danny to regain himself, but his face quickly turned bright red when he realized what had happened. Oh god, he hadn’t meant to do that. It’s not that he actually thought Dash was going to hurt him, he had just associated Dash with “ass kicking” on too many occasions and it triggered a subconscious reaction.

“W-what do you want?” Danny managed to ask, while staring at his bag.  There was no way Dash was going to let him live that down and he kept expecting to hear him laugh. However, it never came.

“Oh my god. I’m… I’m so sorry.” Dash sputtered out.

Danny quickly glanced up at him, a bit confused by his response. Did he just apologize? Sincerely?

“It’s fine, I guess. It was my fault, I don’t know what I was expecting.” Danny mumbled. 

Dash found very little comfort in that response as his guilt _finally_ got the best of him. “No, you know what? No.” He said while sitting down next to Fenton who still seemed horribly embarrassed. “That should have never happened. You know why? Because I shouldn’t have been such a dick to you in highschool. I was wrong, okay? And that shouldn’t be your problem.”

Danny just stared at him dumbly, unsure of how to respond. Was Dash really apologizing for _everything_? “I-I don’t understand.” He finally managed to spit out.

Dash sighed, unsure of whether or not he should continue, but he really just needed to clear this up. “My friends ditched me after high school, I don’t play football like I intended, I really don’t have many friends now, and the few I do have, none of them I can say I’m close to. College is great, but in just one year I felt like I was completely turned around. To be honest, I recognized that I had been a really shallow and awful person. I wanted to sweep it under the rug, pretend it never happened, but I don’t know, I guess seeing you here just brought everything back to the surface. You deserved an apology, you did nothing to warrant my, or anyone’s, abuse.”

Danny was quiet for a moment and Dash half expected him to get up and leave, but then Danny did what he had never anticipated.

He started laughing.

Now it was Dash’s turn to be embarrassed. _Why was he laughing_?

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry! I just can’t believe this is even real right now. Like, who paid you? My sister? Is this some sort of bet you’ve made? A dare?” Danny let out another chuckle before growing really quiet. “I don’t appreciate it, if that is the case.” He informed in a very serious tone.

Dash could not believe the drastic change in demeanor and emotions. Maybe Fenton was a little crazy after all.  Dash opened his mouth to speak, but Danny cut him off.

“Look, what happened in highschool is in the past. I don’t know if you’re serious or not, but regardless, I’ve moved on. You weren’t my biggest problem at that time, and while hurtful, I had much more serious things to worry about. You were an ass, but I have always just accepted that fact. If you’re serious about what you say, then you should know that I forgive you, and you should stop feeling guilty. However, if that’s not the case, I would appreciate it if you never approached me again.” The weight in Danny’s voice was chilling and Dash had to resist the urge to just get up and flee.

Danny stood up and grabbed his bag; obviously Dash had nothing further to say.

However, before he could walk off Dash jumped up and blurted out, “I did it because I liked you!”

Danny froze. “E-Excuse me?”

Dash also stood there frozen for a moment, unable to comprehend the fact that he actually just said that out loud. But he had, so there was no going back now.

“I said… I did it because I liked you.” He repeated, this time a lot quieter.

Danny’s face scrunched in confusion.  “So like, some sort of elementary school-boy type of mentality? But instead of pushing girls off swings because of a crush you would punch me and shove me in to lockers  because you… wanted to be friends?”

Dash almost laughed out loud. What an awful way to put it. “I like how you assumed that it was because I wanted to be _friends_ Fenton.” Dash commented, barely aware of the subtle confession.

Luckily it went over Danny’s head.

“I don’t understand what you’re trying to tell me then.” Danny stated, a bit annoyed.

“No, just forget it Fent-”

“Danny. My name is Danny.” Danny corrected curtly.

“Whatever.” Dash waved his hand dismissively.

Danny rolled his eyes. “You started this, you know. Don’t get pissed at me.”

“You know what? Fine. Let me be as straight-forward as possible then.” Dash began, annoyed. “I had a crush on you, _Danny_.” The moment the words left his mouth he regretted it. What the Hell was he thinking? How did they end up here?

Danny stood there speechless trying to process what Dash had just confessed. This had to be a joke. There was no way Dash was being serious.

There was a long silence between the two of them as they both tried to find the words to say. Finally Danny broke the silence by clearing his throat and pulling Dash from his mental berating.

“So, like… how much are they paying you? Like whoever dared you to do this? I sure hope a lot because this is the easiest way to trash your reputation, I hope you know.” Danny informed. Not that he would, he wasn’t that type. Still, the opportunity was there.

Dash looked horrified for a moment before shrugging. “I would deserve it, wouldn’t I? I mean how many rumors did I perpetuate that lead to you being cornered in the locker room?” He scowled. “But for the record, I am not being paid and it wasn’t a dare.”

“So, you mean to tell me, you had a crush on me in highschool and that is why you decided to beat the shit out of me every day?” Danny eyed him skeptically.

Dash could feel himself growing more and more frustrated. “Boys don’t like other boys! Every time I saw your stupid face I would get pissed because I wasn’t suppose to like you! So, if I couldn’t rid myself of these feelings of… of… you know! Then I would have to hate you for them! I hated you. I hated you because I liked you. And every day I had to face you and be reminded of how I was different and how something about me wasn’t right. That pissed me off, so I took my frustration out on the very person that was driving me crazy! And that person was you, okay?”

Danny adjusted his bag on his shoulder. “You’re terrible Dash. What do you want? Me to confess I’m gay? Wouldn’t that be something to talk about. I’m so done with this.” Danny scoffed.

Dash knew very well Danny didn’t owe him anything, but he wanted him to at least _try_ and understand. He just did not want him to walk away thinking that his intentions were to always find ways to hurt him. He fucked things up so bad. How did this happen? There was no going back now; this situation was unfixable. So it didn't matter if he…

Before any thought of logic could shut him down, Dash found himself whipping Danny around. Danny cried out in annoyance before he was abruptly cut-off by pressure against his lips.

Lips against his lips.

Dash had _kissed_ him.

The moment was brief and inelegant, but the point was made.

Dash pulled away, horrified about what he had just done. It was over. Not only was he going to end up with his reputation trashed, but his crush of 5 or so years was about to reject him. There was no doubt about that. He just hated being looked at like a liar and how else could he have proven it? God, he was an idiot.

There was a long moment of silence before Danny whispered, “I understand.”

Wait, what? No yelling? No cussing? No disgusted insults?

Dash finally found the courage to look up at Fenton who was staring awkwardly at the ground.

“I really should go meet my roommate.”

Dash simply nodded in response as he watched Danny quickly hurry off. He stood there for a moment only to realize that at least five students were staring. _Fuck_.

“What the Hell are you looking at?” He shouted seeing he was in no mood for their judgmental stares.

The exact stares he always dreaded ever getting, thus why he had always masked his feelings with violence and hurtful jokes. He deserved it. He let out an exasperated sigh as he turned away from the whispering people. Wait, Fenton running off reminded him, he really needed to get back to his dorm too. His roommate transferred colleges, so he should be getting a new roommate who was probably touching his stuff by now.

Dash quickly made it his dorm building, up the stairs, and to his door. He reached for the door handle to find it unlocked, which meant his new roommate was already there.

 _Fantastic_. He thought sarcastically.

He opened the door and caught sight of a figure. “Hey, I’m Dash, I’m your new ro-”

He didn’t have time to finish as he met the gaze of a very amused Danny Fenton.

“You know, maybe you should have checked who your new roommate was _before_ you confessed your love.” Danny chuckled lightly.

Dash’s face immediately flushed with embarrassment and anger.

“So, where were we?” Danny questioned with a teasing smile.

“You are _so_ dead Fenton!” Dash yelled with mock anger, before slamming the door.

This was going to be an interesting semester for sure.


	2. Beauty is in the Eyes of the Beholder

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt 1: Beauty

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! I’m back, by popular demand. Originally I had not intended to continue this, but I got a really positive response! So, I plan on making this one-shot in to a multi-chapter. Essentially, it’s going to be about their college adventures together and each chapter will based on one-word prompts. Each chapter will correspond; however there probably will be no long-term in depth plot and each chapter could easily be read as a stand-alone. This series is mostly just fluff and crack. Anyway, I have no idea how many prompts I’ll do or where this is progressing to, but here you go!

It has been two weeks since Dash met Danny Fenton on campus. It has been two weeks since that dreadfully embarrassing confession and kiss. It has been two weeks since they began rooming together, as if fate had a bad sense of humor. It has been to weeks, and yet, nothing really came out of any of it. Dash wasn’t sure if this was a good thing, or a bad thing. Probably a good thing considering any other guy he knew would have rejected him and probably requested a room transfer. After a few jokes were passed back and forth about the supposed ‘highschool crush’, the conversation was dropped – and not revisited. They both had unpacked their things and began going about their lives. Dash considered bringing it up, but then thought better of it. He was a child at times, and was not sure he could handle that sort of rejection. Maybe this was Fenton’s way of insinuating he wasn’t interested? He actually hoped that maybe, just maybe, he could make himself move on. They say sometimes confessing your feelings could help you move on from them, especially when the other did not share them. Unfortunately that did not seem to be the case for Dash; actually it was quite the opposite. Dash found himself noticing small things about Fenton, intrigued by basically anything he did. He started paying attention to the things he kept close, how long he spent on his hair, what hours he went to bed at night, how he tapped his pencil when he was stuck on a problem, or how he would disappear randomly during odd hours. He tried to ignore Fenton’s presence; there was no need to feel this… attached. They had only been reunited for two weeks, so why…

“Dash?” Danny stepped in to the room, tossing a towel to the side, and letting the door close quickly behind him.

“Yeah?” Dash looked up to find Danny in sweatpants, a tshirt two sizes too big, and his hair messy and damp from the shower. Dash could not help but to think how attractive he seemed in that moment. He wasn’t sure if it because he truly was, or if he really needed to back off the romance movies.

“I’m going to go do laundry, do you need anything washed?” Danny questioned as he started throwing some of his things in to a basket.

“Uh, I can do it myself you know.” Dash stated.

Danny rolled his eyes. “Yeah, but why do two loads when we can do one? And I’m already heading down there so…”

“Oh. “ Dash breathed, a little embarrassed. “Okay, in that case I do. Give me one moment.” Dash turned and grabbed a handful of clothes and threw them in to a basket of his own. He turned to hand it over just in time to catch Danny pulling his shirt over his head and tossing it in to his own laundry.

Dash gawked for a moment. Had Fenton always been so toned? No. There was no way; this had to be an after-highschool occurrence.  Danny turned slightly and Dash caught sight a few pretty nasty looking scars, but before he could get a good look, Danny quickly pulled a tank top over his head. For a moment Dash considered asking Danny about the scars, but that was probably rude.

Danny turned and grabbed Dash’s basket, put it beside his, and walked over to where they had stored some detergent.

“Didn’t take you for the house-work type, Fenton.” Dash joked.

Danny clicked his tongue. “When you’re confronted by smelly jocks all through highschool you begin to become very aware of personal hygiene.” A little blunt, yeah, but Danny was enjoying the sweet taste of reality he was dishing out to Dash.

“Okay, wow.” Dash responded, annoyed.  “Not all of us have the wife-instinct.”

"I wasn’t aware cleanliness was a… wife thing. In that case, I guess I’m the wife.” He shrugged as he picked the baskets up.

“I d-didn’t mean it like t-that!” Dash sputtered.

“Uh-huh. Sure, sure. Whatever you say, _dear_.” Danny mocked as he made his way towards the door.

Dash didn’t give him time to leave before he was yanking his basket out of Danny’s hands.

Danny let out a gasp as he glared at Dash who was now also walking out the door.

“What in the world are you doing?” Danny chased after him.

“Doing laundry.” Dash responded.

Danny scoffed. “I’m sorry, do you need to prove some sort of point now? Have I hurt your ego?”

Dash turned to glare at him. “I’m perfectly capable of handling myself, Fenton.”

Danny sighed. “Fine.” He responded as they both headed to the laundry room. Danny placed his basket beside a washer and beckoned Dash over. “However, we’re still doing one load, since there is no point in us both spending $2.50, if it can just be done together.”

“Fine, but how will we know who’s who’s afterwards?” Dash questioned.

“Well first off, you’re like twice my size. Secondly-” Danny reached in to his basket and pulled out a black t-shirt with a golden triforce printed boldly on the front. “-Does this look like something you’d wear?”

Dash rubbed the back of his neck. “Uh… no.”

“I didn’t think so. I think we’ll be fine.” Danny stated while tossing his things in to the machine and gesturing Dash to do the same.

Dash followed suit.

“Now…” Danny handed Dash the money and detergent. “Do the laundry.” He said while leaning against the washer next to them.

Dash looked at the detergent and money, at the washer, at Danny, then back at the items in his hand. “Uh.”

“What? Don’t know what you’re doing?” Danny teased.

Dash growled. “No, I got it.” How hard could it be, really? He looked at the buttons on the washer. He selected large load and… shit should it run on hot, cold or something else? He hesitated, not wanting to ask Fenton.

“Warm and fast.” Danny coughed out under his breath.

Dash glared at him.

“I mean unless there is anything you are concerned about getting ruined, then cold and gentle would be best, but I was seeing a lot of basic and well-worn clothes in there.”

Dash pressed the fast and then the warm option like Fenton originally mentioned.

Danny gestured for him to continue.  “The detergent.”

Dash scanned the machine. “Uh, this?” He tapped a tray on the machine.

Danny nodded.

Dash opened it up and held up the detergent. How much should he use?

“Hey Danny!” Someone called out from the other side.

Danny turned and smiled at the newcomer. “Hey!” He said while making his way over. “Dash, just fill the tray, insert the money, and hit start.” Danny instructed as he went to greet his other friend.

Dash stared back at the tray still not know how much. Not wanting to ask Fenton he decided to just wing it and closed the tray, inserted the money, and hit start.

After exchanging a few words with the boy he had become acquainted with recently, Danny made his way back over. “All set?” He questioned.

“Yeah.” Dash informed as he gestured to the machine.

“Good. It’s going to take a while and it’s best not to leave it unattended. I have a paper to write, so I can stick around here. If you’d like you can head back to the room.” Danny said, while walked over to a chair.

Knowing they probably would not be conversing, Dash decided to go do some of his work in the room, instead of hanging with Danny in the laundry room. It appeared he had someone there to keep him company anyway – whoever that was. Dash had never seen him before.

 

Dash made his way back and worked for a while on his English assignment. It was boring and he thought of everything else he could be doing besides that. He sighed and rolled over on the bed, pushing his work aside. It had been about a half an hour; maybe he could go see what Fenton was doing? He moved to get off of his bed when his cell phone began ringing.  Dash looked at the caller ID which read “Danny Fenton.”

Weird coincidence. Why was Fenton calling him?

He picked it up and answered, “What is it?”

“Can you come to the laundry room real quick?” Danny questioned on the other end.

“Yeah sure, one moment.” Dash agreed before hanging up.

Well, that was weird. He shrugged it off and headed down to the laundry room. He entered the room and casually made his way over to where Danny was standing beside the machine.

“Fenton?” Dash questioned as he came closer.

Danny whipped around and before Dash could even consider what he was doing, something wet made contact with his face.

“What the Hell?” Dash yelled, wiping whatever it was from his face. It was in vain though, because Danny continued to throw more at him.

“What the shit Fenton, knock it off!” He scolded as he looked down at what was now covering him.  Bubbles? Soap bubbles?

“There are like a million fucking bubbles, Dash! How much soap did you put in it?” Danny yelled.

Dash angrily walked over, reached in the machine, pulled out some of the soap bubbles, and proceeded to launch it at Danny as well.

Danny stumbled back, surprised by the sudden reaction.

“It’s not my fault!” Dash yelled as he continued to throw bubbles back at Danny. “You said fill the tray, so I did!”

Danny continued, as well, to throw soapy water and giant bubbles at Dash. “Dude, it’s called directions! You’re supposed to read the directions! Did you not check the amount?” Danny questioned, exasperated.

Dash reached over and grabbed the detergent and walked over to Danny. “How much soap do you think it would take to clean up your attitude, Fenton?” He questioned as dumped about a cap full of detergent on Danny’s head.

Danny let out a horrified gasp as the soap soaked his recently cleaned hair. Things felt strangely like highschool again.

Before Dash could make any sort of move, Danny lunged at him and grabbed at the detergent bottle. “Give it to me, Dash!”

“No!” Dash shoved Danny aside, however, with a little more force than he originally intended. Danny stumbled back before losing balance and falling straight back in to one of the laundry baskets.

Dash, for a moment, felt really bad and opened his mouth to apologize. However, looking down at a soap soaked, bubble covered, dazed Danny Fenton sitting in a basket, was just too much.

Dash burst out laughing.

Danny’s face lit up with a bright blush as he struggled to get back on his feet.

“Beautiful Fenton! Grace at it’s finest!” Dash mocked.

“I swear to God Dash I-!” Danny began, but then stopped himself. Honestly, why was he so angry? He started it after all, and no one else was in the room other than Dash for him to be embarrassed about. Honestly, the situation _was_ funny, and there was a lot worse Dash could have said or done. He sighed as he stood up and couldn’t help the smile that crossed his face.

“You’re an idiot, you know that?” Danny stated with a smirk.

Dash stopped his laughter. “I can’t believe you called me down here just to throw bubbles at me. What the heck was that about?”

Danny shrugged. “Seemed like the right thing to do at the time.” He ran his hand through his hair and the sticky thick soap met his fingers. He scowled. “Great, now I have to re-shower.”

“Should we, uh, re-do it?” Dash questioned while gesturing to the machine.

Danny nodded. “You’re paying for it this time.”

Dash walked over and began transferring the clothes in to another washer so they could be rewashed properly. “So I guess I should ask how much detergent to use this time, huh?”

“Ya think?” Danny responded as he sat on one of the other washers, eyeing Dash intently.

Dash shook some bubbles out of his hair before picking up the detergent. “So, like how did you learn how to do this sort of thing?” He questioned as he attempted to read the directions on the back.

“I guess I just have the wife-instinct.” Danny responded sarcastically.

“No seriously, there’s no way.” Dash said while filling the tray, this time with a reasonable amount. “Like, I wouldn’t have even known what buttons to push unless you’d been here.”

“Isn’t this your second semester though? What did you do the whole first semester?” Danny questioned, honestly confused by Dash’s lack of knowledge of how to work a washing machine.

Dash looked away, a bit embarrassed. “Er, I sometimes go home on the weekends so I normally just take my clothes that need washed home with me.”

“Oh… well that makes sense.” Danny admitted. He honestly hadn’t considered that. At least, that way, it’d be free. “To be honest, I called Jazz.” Danny admitted. “She walked me through it, since she’s been in college a lot longer than I. I figured she probably had some idea of what to do.”

“Cheater.” Dash accused as he started the machine.

Danny shrugged and smiled. “I wouldn’t call it that.”

“You should probably go wash that out of your hair.” Dash pointed at the soap, seeing how it seemed to make Danny’s hair clump.

Danny scowled. “Yeah you’re right. I’ll see you later.” He said, while heading off, leaving Dash alone to tend to the laundry.

 

About an hour later they both joined back together in the dorm where they dumped the clothes in the middle of the room so they could sort through them.

“Jesus Christ you’re small.” Dash stated while holding up a pair of Danny’s shorts.

“Gee, I had no idea.” Danny replied before leaning in and whipping them out of Dash’s hands.

As Danny pulled away, Dash caught a whiff of the very strong lilac scent that emitted from Danny. “Damn dude, you smell like a walking flower.”

“I wonder who’s fault that is!” Danny accused defensively. “I’m probably going to smell like a garden for the next week!”

Dash laughed. Beautiful. Danny was truly beautiful. “I guess you really are the wife.”

Danny whipped a shirt at Dash’s face. “Ass-hat” He said with a laugh.                                              


	3. Imperfections Make Us Perfect

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Based on the prompt: Perfect

Things were going good, given their history. For two people that seemed to be on opposite ends of the spectrum, things were pretty decent. Danny was relatively quiet for the most part, never bringing anyone back to the dorm, and keeping mostly to himself. Despite his issue with schoolwork in high school, Danny was pretty dedicated to his studies now. Dash was pretty focused too, but it was obvious Danny had his standards set a little higher. Things were good, but certainly not perfect.

Because, to be honest, here were some nights where Danny wanted to throw Dash out of the room. When he could, Danny had a tendency to go to bed early, which seemed to be a problem for Dash who liked to come in and make a bunch of noise. And man, there were times where Dash wanted to walk over and shove Danny in to a wall for the sarcastic comments that left his mouth without thinking. They would fight over stupid things too like Dash’s clothes on the floor, where books were left, acceptable hours to use a hairdryer, appropriate amounts of cologne, and so on. Nothing major, but enough to sometimes drive them both over the edge.

Like just the other day, Danny had left one of his textbooks in the middle of the floor; apparently he had been studying there. Dash happened to trip on it while with a girl he had just met. She had laughed and Dash couldn’t help but to be furious. Regardless of whether or not he liked her, that shit was embarrassing! After berating Danny about where he left his books, Danny got pissed and started criticizing Dash for everything he had around the room.

Long story short, Danny took a textbook to the head and Dash woke up to discover he couldn’t find a single article of clothing.

So, yeah things weren’t perfect, and some adjustments should probably be made, but Dash didn’t know where to start. And Danny? Danny was a pretty unpredictable and stubborn person, and well…

 

“Fenton, what the Hell are you doing?” Dash questioned as he walked through the door to find a bunch material scattered about.

“Building a bookshelf, so maybe some of our problems will be solved.” Danny answered while scanning over the directions.

“Oh? Feel guilty about leaving your books in the middle of the floor?” Dash commented smugly.

“Actually, no. I’m sick of you putting yours on the register and blocking the air conditioner.” Danny replied while picking up some of the materials.

Dash scoffed. One negative thing Dash noted about Danny was he really could be quite unpleasant at times and his mood tended to swing at the flick of a switch. Then again, that was probably partially Dash’s fault; he imagined there might still be some bitter feelings from high school.  “Well don’t be making too much noise, I need to study.”

Danny began arranging the pieces and picked up the base parts. He aligned the pieces and made eye contact with Dash as he reached for the hammer. “No promises.” He said while he began hammering the first pieces in to place.

“Are you kidding me, Fenton?” Dash questioned, aggravated.

“Look I’ll be done shortly, okay? It really won’t take that long.” Danny began grabbing other pieces.

One thing good about Danny was he had experience with this sort of thing. His father often times dropped projects like this on him, so he basically already knew what he was doing. The process should go relatively fast, and Danny didn’t want to spend any more time than necessary on it.

Danny continued to work while Dash pulled out some of his notes.

Bang, bang, bang.

Dash shut his notes with some aggression.

Danny glanced over, sensing the hostility. “Look, I was here first. Go to the lounge or something.”

“Yeah, but this is also my room.” Dash objected while standing up.

Danny ignored him.

Dash really hated being ignored. “Okay, fine!”

Danny raised an eyebrow at Dash who was walking towards him.

“I’ll just help you then, since I obviously can’t focus.”

“Seriously dude, just go to the lounge.” Danny encouraged.

Dash did not want to admit he actually wanted to help. It gave him a reason to be closer to Danny, fowl mood or not.

“No I’m helping.” Dash insisted while looking at the directions.

Danny let out an over-dramatic sigh, but did not further object. “Here.” Danny pointed to the directions. “Do this part. All the pieces are labeled so literally just do what it says.”

Dash nodded as he reached for the parts and Danny began assembling another section.

They worked quietly for a couple minutes. A million thoughts were running through Dash’s mind as he struggled to keep focused on the task. Should he talk causally to him? Should he keep quiet? Maybe they should put music or something on…

“Dash, are you okay?” Danny asked, noting Dash’s nervousness.

“Huh? Yeah I’m fine. Why wouldn’t I be?”

“I don’t know you seem like you want to say something.” Danny pointed out.

Dash didn’t answer and just shrugged it off. Danny clicked his tongue, but didn’t press, and continued what he was doing.

Another long period of time went by and Dash was struggling to keep his worry at bay. Was Danny mad at him? Had he done something wrong? He was just in a bad mood, right? It didn’t concern him.” Dash was going to resolve to keeping silent, but regardless he opened his mouth, and out spilled the question that has been nagging at him for weeks.

“Are you mad at me for kissing you?”

Danny froze. “W-what?” He questioned, a bit stunned at the sudden question.

Fuck, what was he doing? Well it was too late now, he already asked.

“Are you mad at me for kissing you or for anything in general? I mean I am under the impression you’re straight since you didn’t say anything, and I guess if so that shit can be kind of embarrassing. Not to mention everything that went down in high school and then for me to just dump a confession on you out of nowhere it just seems, I don’t know. And you just seem mad all the time and I-”

Danny held his finger up to Dash’s lips to silence him. “Dude, you’re rambling.”

Dash blushed. “I’m s-sorry I-”

Danny quickly put his hand back up. “Don’t. There is nothing to apologize for. I’ve always been a moody person; it’s something I need to work on, but also something you just need to keep in mind. I am a bit mouthy, in case you haven’t noticed, so if you’ve done something wrong; I’ll tell you.”

Dash sighed. He wanted to be relieved, but the embarrassment was a bit overwhelming.

Danny smirked. “Hey Dash?”

Dash looked over at Danny sheepishly.

Danny leaned in quickly, his lips grazing Dash’s, before pulling away.

Dash felt his entire face heat up. What in the world?

Danny was blushing too, not believing his own nerve. “So, uh, there. You’re the embarrassed one now.” He turned to continue what he was doing.

“You’re gay?” Dash questioned after a long period of silence.

“Bi.”

“Bye? You’re leaving?” Dash questioned timidly.

Danny snorted. “No. Bi as in bisexual, oh my god.”

Dash grumbled. Well that was embarrassing, he never thought of that.

“Speaking of leaving though, what time is it?” Danny questioned, suddenly worried as he scrambled for his phone.

There was some shuffling before Danny swore under his breath. “I’m going to be late for class. Dash, do you think you can finish the shelf? I mean you don’t have to, but-”

Dash put his hand in the air to silence him. “No, it’s fine, I got it. I have all night to study anyway I suppose.”

“Thanks.” Danny said while quickly tossing some of his things in to his bag. “I’ll see you later!” Danny called out, as he ran out the door.

Dash sat there with a million things running through his head. Fenton was bi! That means he had a chance, right? Or not. That didn’t mean Fenton liked him. But then, what was that kiss? Was it simply to embarrass him? Or could it have been acceptance? Should he ask? Or would that make things even weirder? Dash needed answers and cursed Danny for leaving him so puzzled. He picked up some of the equipment and continued to build the shelf in attempt to distract himself.

* * *

 

A couple hours passed and Danny headed back to the dorm, exhausted. He hoped that Dash had finished the shelf so he did not have to finish it later. He approached the door and fiddled with keys, finding the door was locked. Maybe Dash had gone out? Before Danny could get the door unlocked, it opened. Danny looked up curious to find a very nervous Dash.

“Uh, hi?” Danny questioned, trying to get Dash to move to the side.

“Okay, wait, before you come inside I wanted you to know that I am really sorry.”

Okay, well that was troublesome.  “Dash, what did you do? Why was the door locked?”

“Like, I don’t know what happened okay? It just sort of happened. And I needed to know when you were coming in, so I figured you unlocking the door would suffice. I wanted to warn you before you-”

“Dash. Move.” Danny said cutting dash off, while pushing the door open further.

Danny walked in and in front of him stood the finished bookshelf, upright and in place. However…

“Holy shit, it’s really crooked!” Danny yelled while tossing his bag on to his bed.

“I know! I don’t know what I did wrong!” Dash said, a bit distressed.

“I don’t understand…” Danny began while examining the shelf.

“I don’t either! I followed the directions!” Dash defended.

“Are you sure you used the right pieces?” Danny continued to examine it. “It looks like the sides are two different boards. Like you…” Danny trailed off as he caught sight of the letters that were hidden on the boards. “Dash?”

“What?”

“Are you dyslexic?” Danny questioned.

“Are you mocking me?” Dash asked, slightly offended.

“No, I’m not being a smartass here, that was a serious question. Are you dyslexic?” Danny asked again, with sincerity.

Dash looked uncomfortable. “Why…?”

Danny gave a light laugh. “You mixed up the D and B boards.”

Dash looked horrified and Danny couldn’t help but be a bit amused.

“I… did?” Dash began. “This is really fucking humiliating.”

Danny’s gaze softened. “Dash, it’s okay, really. I understand.”

“I’m sorry, I know how stuff like this bothers you. And this on top of fucking up the laundry I just can’t get things right.” Dash apologized.

“Dash…” Danny began.

“I’m sorry I gave you a reason to be mad now.” Dash continued rambling.

“Dash.” Danny tried to get his attention.

“I can go get a new one, we can start over and-”

“Dash!” Danny yelled.

Dash stared wide-eyed at Danny.

“It’s functional. Other than crooked, there is nothing wrong with it, we don’t need to start over.” Danny tried to calm him down.

He really wasn’t mad nor did he think negatively of the situation. Actually, he felt bad. Not that he wanted to admit it, but he had his own learning disabilities and he understood how simple mistakes could be absolutely maddening.

“It isn’t perfect.” Dash stated.

Danny shrugged. “No, but it’s functional. And it’s… interesting.”

Dash didn’t seem convinced.

Danny sighed and took his books out of his bag and began arranging them on one of the lower shelves. “Look, it actually works out really well.” He gestured to the books. “If you place them from right to left, they are less likely to fall than on a normal bookshelf because of the slant.”

Dash remained quiet.

Danny rolled his eyes. “Dash. It’s imperfect, but functional. The imperfection makes it interesting and somehow better. Think of it as a metaphor.”

“A metaphor? For what?”

“Our relationship.” Danny said with an awkward smile.

It took a moment for Dash to register what Danny had insinuated. Had he just, hinted _they_ had a chance?

Danny waved his hand dismissively. “Take it how you wish.” He said before grabbing the rest of his books and putting them on the shelf.

Dash was elated and stood there a bit dumbfounded. Sure he could have met friendship, but that wasn’t going to stop Dash from having hope.

Danny scowled. “So, what should we do about your clothes?”

Dash frowned. “You ruined the moment.”

Danny rolled his eyes, “Idiot.”

Dash turned to pick up some of his clothes to ease Danny. He smiled. Things were perfect in their own respect, even if they were _different_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one is a little shorter than the other two, but I was rather uninspired. I'm sorry, hopefully it's okay though.


End file.
